Every year, college football continues to drastically change as the sport is quickly starting to resemble the NFL. NIL, Revenue Sharing, and the Transfer Portal have created a form of free agency at the college level as players can take themselves to the best program for their development and financial interests on a yearly basis.
College football staffs have started to adjust to the times, as each program has a front office with a GM in a fashion similar to the NFL. Frankly, each team needs to be set up this way as the negotiations and the contracts are far too much for the head coach to worry about with all of their other obligations.
The USC Trojans are showing just how much the game has changed
The Transfer Portal opens in the first days of January, and each program is starting to prepare for what lies ahead. While adding key pieces is important, retaining the elite talent on the roster is another key aspect in this current landscape.
On social media this week, college football fans couldn't help but notice the flurry of posts from the USC Football account announcing that players had re-signed with the program.
Ryon Sayeri has re-signed with the USC Trojans. pic.twitter.com/Rj230IRZkD
— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) December 16, 2025
Tanook Hines has re-signed with the USC Trojans. pic.twitter.com/wbKqU283Dv
— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) December 15, 2025
Waymond Jordan has re-signed with the USC Trojans. pic.twitter.com/hytKhKQqVk
— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) December 14, 2025
The trend from the Trojans felt super weird for college football fans as the posts looked just like what you see from NFL teams when they announce that a player has officially signed a contract. Letting the fans know that some of the most important players are returning is key, but to see USC embrace the times felt jarring.
This weekend, USC head coach Lincoln Riley was asked about the trend where he gave an interesting look into why they feel it's important.
USC HC Lincoln Riley noted how USC’s re-signings reflect the evolution of CFB:
— Keely Eure (@keelyismyname) December 16, 2025
"In this day and age, it’s almost more like an NFL team. It’s an accomplishment to be welcomed back - and it’s something that should be celebrated that somebody wants to continue what’s being built." pic.twitter.com/KxdcuMoiQg
The trend isn't just limited to Lincoln Riley's program as the last week has been filled with announcements of players reaching new deals with their program. LaNorris Sellers reached a new deal to comeback for one more season with South Carolina while Maryland star Malik Washington inked a new deal with the Terps.
Seeing programs resign their current stars is going to become a popular trend in college football especially in this revenue sharing era. It's going to be weird to watch for the first several seasons, but eventually we'll see that Lincoln Riley's program was the first to embrace this new world.